A teacher in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, has been forced to leave her classroom after failing to receive effective measures to separate her from a student who subjected her to sexual harassment and stalking.

According to the Gyeonggi Teachers Union and the Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education, teacher A, a female teacher at a high school in Hwaseong, received a letter in late June from a second-year male student, B, whom she previously homeroom-taught, containing explicit sexual desires and feelings.

The letter mentioned the teacher's name more than 34 times and included content about sexual fantasies while demanding the same feelings from the teacher.

Teacher A claimed that even before receiving the letter, she had suffered severe anxiety due to continuous stalking behavior by student B in hallways and the teachers' office.

She reported experiencing panic symptoms after receiving the letter.

The Hwaseong Osan Office of Education issued disciplinary measures against student B on July 20, including a class transfer and eight hours of special education.

However, the problem arose again after the start of the second semester.

Because teacher A was the sole teacher in charge of that elective subject at the school, she was placed in a situation where she would have to face student B again during class despite the class transfer.

Teacher A requested specific alternative separation measures from the school, such as changing student B's elective subject, taking online supplemental classes, or hiring a substitute teacher.

However, the school expressed reluctance, stating, "It is difficult to force a student to change elective subjects, and issues regarding evaluation fairness could arise when hiring a substitute teacher."

Ultimately, as the school reopened on the 18th without practical separation measures in place, teacher A could not endure the psychological distress, took sick leave, and stopped coming to work.

The Gyeonggi Teachers Union criticized the situation, stating, "The reality where the victim, rather than the perpetrator, has to take sick leave destroys the morale of educators."

The Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education views this matter seriously and has decided to assign a dedicated teacher protection officer to begin reviewing the case.

In addition, through the newly launched "Teacher Rights Protection Task Force" scheduled for the 22nd, it plans to intensively investigate the adequacy of the school's teacher rights protection committee measures and practical separation alternatives.

(Reported by Kim Jiuk | Video by Choi Kang-san | Graphics by Yook Do-hyun | Produced by SBS Digital News)